Teen girl stolen at birth reunited with biological parents
- 7 years ago
WALTERBORO, SOUTH CAROLINA — A girl stolen from the hospital as a newborn baby has just been discovered alive, having lived her entire life with a different identity.
In July 10, 1998, little Kamiyah Mobley was born at a hospital in Jacksonville, Florida. Eight hours later, she was taken away by a woman posing as a nurse, Gloria Williams. After detectives realized where the girl was living, they reconnected the 18-year-old with her biological parents. On January 14, she was taking selfies with them.
Moments after she was born, her young mother, 16 at the time, was approached by a woman wearing flowered hospital scrubs. The woman happened to be carrying a purse, which the family thought was a bit odd. She whisked the baby away saying it had a fever, and just like that, the baby was gone. Every year, her devastated mother would wrap a piece of birthday cake for her, and leave it in the freezer.
It wasn’t until late last year that a couple of hot tips led detectives to a girl living in a small town in South Carolina. They tracked her down, to find a young woman named Alexis Manigo. The authorities asked her for a DNA sample, and after eventually attaining it with a warrant, they found out they had a match.
On the same day, the woman the girl had lived her entire life thinking was her mom was arrested by police. The baby-snatcher, 51-year-old Gloria Williams, has been charged with first-degree kidnapping and third-degree interference with custody. She faces life in prison, if convicted.
Now, the teen, who most know as Alexis Manigo, is left to pick up the pieces and figure out how to go forward. She says despite the revelations of her kidnapping, she still has nothing but love for Gloria Williams, the woman who raised her and gave her a happy life. In her eyes, one mistake doesn’t change that.
In July 10, 1998, little Kamiyah Mobley was born at a hospital in Jacksonville, Florida. Eight hours later, she was taken away by a woman posing as a nurse, Gloria Williams. After detectives realized where the girl was living, they reconnected the 18-year-old with her biological parents. On January 14, she was taking selfies with them.
Moments after she was born, her young mother, 16 at the time, was approached by a woman wearing flowered hospital scrubs. The woman happened to be carrying a purse, which the family thought was a bit odd. She whisked the baby away saying it had a fever, and just like that, the baby was gone. Every year, her devastated mother would wrap a piece of birthday cake for her, and leave it in the freezer.
It wasn’t until late last year that a couple of hot tips led detectives to a girl living in a small town in South Carolina. They tracked her down, to find a young woman named Alexis Manigo. The authorities asked her for a DNA sample, and after eventually attaining it with a warrant, they found out they had a match.
On the same day, the woman the girl had lived her entire life thinking was her mom was arrested by police. The baby-snatcher, 51-year-old Gloria Williams, has been charged with first-degree kidnapping and third-degree interference with custody. She faces life in prison, if convicted.
Now, the teen, who most know as Alexis Manigo, is left to pick up the pieces and figure out how to go forward. She says despite the revelations of her kidnapping, she still has nothing but love for Gloria Williams, the woman who raised her and gave her a happy life. In her eyes, one mistake doesn’t change that.